1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a rehabilitation support system particularly adapted for utilization by those having debilitating ambulatory conditions due to their age or injuries they have suffered and more specifically relates to a rehabilitation support system designed for safety, comfort and simplicity of use in a wide variety of applications.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Over the years there have been numerous types of devices that have been designed to serve as solutions to the serious problem health care facilities face in having insufficient personnel for properly assisting patients with debilitating ambulatory conditions as a result of their age, disease or injury. The need for such devices is caused by the fact that it may require two to three therapists to safely treat a patient during rehabilitation activities. Typically, health care facilities do not have sufficient manpower available for properly assisting a large number of patients in performing the optimum amount of rehabilitation activities they require. This is particularly true for those patients that require dynamic exercise, gait training or balance exercising as part of their treatment while standing in an erect position.
Some of the various types of known prior art rehabilitation support systems are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,780,663; 4,725,908; 4,164,350 and 4,911,426. The systems disclosed in such prior art patents generally involve patient support systems that include a support harness of some kind for the patient that is suspended from an overhead rail on which a movable mechanism is located so that a patient is supported in an erect position as rehabilitation activities are performed.
The present invention is an improvement over those prior art devices described above in that it allows freedom of movement for the patient in all directions or planes, meaning side-to-side, forward and back and even up and down with transfers or on a step, and can be utilized in combination with a treadmill, stationary bike, balance machine, etc.